While on vacation in Navarre Beach, Florida I was entertained early one morning as I watched a father teaching his daughter the fundamentals of surfing.  The empty beach and the choppy early-morning waves created a perfect training environment.  

     The father initially gave his young daughter proper instruction.  Before they entered into the water he told her what to expect and how to embrace the board.  Once they were in the water it was obvious this was her first attempt at the sport.  After several crashes he corrected her technique and told her what she was doing wrong.  After forty-five minutes of multiple attempts her dad finally got up on the surf board and showed her how to do it.  This seemed to prove successful.  After he demonstrated it to her she immediately got on the board and caught her first wave all the way to the shore.  This may have been a surfing lesson for the young girl, but it was a life-lesson for me when it comes to parenting.  

     This man had three fundamental principles in his teaching approach: instruction, correction, and demonstration.  Children need our instruction, they also need our correction; but when it seems like they can’t get the hang of it, they may need to see us demonstrating it in our own lives.  Without a proven example, it is likely they will crash every time.